Glasgow's Merchant City Festival to return this summer

Glasgow’s Merchant City Festival is set to return this summer.

The popular event – which will run between July 8-11 – will showcase a long weekend of entertainment with outdoor arts, circus, dance and more.

A carnival, inspired by Baroque Venetian themes, will open the festival in style with pop-up performances in a variety of places.

The full programme will be revealed in the coming weeks.

Organisers said the 2021 festival will be “slightly different” to previous years to ensure compliance with public health guidelines.

All events during the festival will continue to be free to attend, however due to current coronavirus restrictions several of the programmed events will need to be pre-booked online to ensure numbers are managed in the safest way.

To mark the launch of the 2021 edition, Merchant City retailers and restaurants are being invited to apply to the festival’s Get Involved Fund, which offers a £500 grant to businesses operating in the area to join in the festival atmosphere and organise some entertainment and cultural activity within or outside their premises during the event.

Premises who are existing licence holders are also being invited to apply to extend their licenced outdoor areas for the duration of the festival so that food and drink provision will be readily available across the festival site.

There will be no markets or additional food and drink provisions aside from what is already in operation in the Merchant City this year.

Councillor David McDonald, chair of Glasgow Life, said: “We can’t wait to welcome the return of Merchant City Festival this summer.

“It is such a warm and welcoming event and with restrictions starting to lift and light appearing at the end of this difficult year we look forward to sharing the programme of engaging and celebratory events with you over the coming weeks.

“The local retailers, restaurant and bars within Merchant City are an integral part of the festival every year and I do encourage as many as possible to sign up to the Get Involved Fund so we can help facilitate them being an even bigger part of what is set to be a feel-good and exciting long weekend of culture and fun.”